Hot pockets are great in terms of taste and they can be super handy as a quick snack for your kids after they are back from school, or for yourself, if you don’t feel like starting a long cooking process.
However, since hot pockets are often sold being already frozen, many people wonder whether or not hot pockets can be cooked in an air fryer.
So in this article, we will give you an answer to this question.
You will learn how to air fry hot pockets correctly so that you get perfectly crispy and yummy snacks quickly without burning them or having them mushy. In addition, you are going to learn a few useful cooking tips and life hacks.
With their help, your whole family will adore the hot pockets that you air fry for them!
How to Cook Hot Pockets In Air Fryer?
If you have ever asked yourself how to air fry hot pockets correctly, you will be happy to learn that it is quite easy to do. Since hot pockets are mostly sold being already frozen, you don’t have to waste your time cooking them “from scratch”!
All you need to do is to cook them using a method that suits you most.
And for the majority of housewives, this method implies using an air fryer. If you are hesitating about whether or not an air fryer could work well for cooking hot pockets, here is the answer for you.
You can absolutely use your fast-cooking kitchen appliance to get some tasty snacks ready quickly on those rushed mornings before work or school starts!
However, it is important that you follow the major rule of thumb. See, the key to making a successful batch of hot pockets in your air fryer is the right timing.
The more correctly you set the cooking time, the better and tastier your hot pockets will be when they come out of the air fryer. Just keep in mind that the inside of the hot pocket needs to get cooked up, while the outside should be perfectly crispy! This is the key to success.
Usually, it takes from 10 to 15 minutes of cooking time for getting your hot pockets ready to enjoy.
There is also no secret recipe if you are craving some hot pockets that are cooked in your air fryer.
The amount of time it takes to cook hot pockets in an air fryer usually depends on several factors that should be taken into consideration if you want to get a properly cooked dish:
- the size of the hot pockets
- power setting of your air fryer
- the number of hot pockets that are being cooked
The cooking time will generally depend upon how crispy you want them to be. Of course, except for the power of your cooking appliance and all the nuances that we have just listed above.
When cooking hot pockets in the air fryer, you just have to be very careful to not burn the dish which can happen if you cook at too high of a temperature!
Remember that in this case, the outside pastry will burn or at least cook too quickly.
As a result, the center of a hot pocket will still be frozen like ice.
What you need, on the other hand, is a nice balance: a properly cooked hot pocket should be pleasantly crispy from the outside while its insides should be melted cheesy.
This is why we recommend you always keep in mind a simple sequence of actions that will guide you to the perfectly cooked hot pockets, crispy from the outside and cheesy and perfectly melted from the inside.
How to Air Fry a Hot Pocket?
- Start by placing the hot pockets into the air fryer
- Set the temperature of your cooking appliance to 380 degrees Fahrenheit
- Let your hot pockets cook from 10 to 15 minutes
- Depending on the type of your air fryer, you may have to flip the hot pockets halfway during the cooking process
Done! Place your hot and cooked hot pockets onto the plates, serve them, and enjoy! And in order to help you have this simple yet very delicious dish cooked even better, we recommend you read on and check out a few useful life hacks.
With their help, you will become a real hot pocket cooking pro!
Related: How to Fry Frozen French Fries In a Pan?
Tips On Cooking Frozen Hot Pockets In the Air Fryer
Like with any dish, it is always good to know a few handy tips, tricks, and life hacks. They will help you avoid the most common cooking mistakes which means that you will be able to cook a portion of delicious food at once, without having to ruin a batch or two before you get to the point of the process!
And it does not matter whether that food is frozen or needs to be cooked from scratch.
So regarding hot pockets, we also have several recommendations that you should adhere to if you want to succeed:
- For best results, put your hot pockets in the air fryer directly from the freezer. If you thaw them first, you will end up with mushy hot pockets
- Avoid crowding the air fryer basket with the hot pockets. Instead, make sure that you place them in a single layer. It will give you the best results, thus leaving space around them to perfect the cooking process
- There is no need to spray your hot pockets with cooking spray or oil. They will come out perfectly crisp up without any oil at all!
We also recommend you check your hot pockets while they are being air-fried frequently during the cooking process. If you don’t do this, you can easily ruin the dish since every air fryer is slightly different. For example, some air fryers cook much hotter than others!
Usually, after you cook your first hot pocket, you will understand much better what exactly works for your air fryer model and what doesn’t work for it, as well as you will learn what size of food fits it best.
Like this, you are now aware of how to cook frozen hot pockets in the air fryer correctly with just a few simple steps.
With our easy life hacks, you will definitely be able to set the correct cooking regime and thus make sure that the hot pockets you get are perfectly crispy from the outside and cheesy and melted hot from the inside!
Related: How Long to Deep Fry Frozen Fish Fillets?
How to Cook Hot Pockets In the Oven?
We are sure that you are aware of this fact, but hot pockets can be cooked not only in the airfryer. Cooking them in the oven is another way to get these crispy yummies ready to enjoy.
The only downside of this method is that, unlike air frying which takes around 15 minutes, your delicious hotties will have to spend twice as long as that in the oven.
Nevertheless, if you are ok with waiting a bit more, don’t skip this alternative cooking approach!
If you want to bake your Hot Pocket in the oven, you will have to make several easy steps. Luckily, this method of cooking them is not complicated at all.
- Unwrap your hot pockets
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- Place unwrapped hot pockets on a baking sheet
- Bake them for 30 minutes, until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees
We also suggest you check them now and then while they are being cooked this way.
Like that, you will make sure that your hot pockets are being oven-baked evenly and thoroughly, and you will avoid a scenario when a hot pocket is hot on one side and warm or even cool on the other!
Related: 15 Hacks. How Long to Fry Frozen French Fries?
How to Reheat Hot Pockets In a Microwave?
Even though air frying is a quick method of cooking food, nowadays not everyone has even that little time! with our busy lives, most of us most likely have around five or ten minutes to get some food or a snack ready to grab it and chew on the go.
In terms of quickness, hot pockets are an easy and fast option for lunch, dinner, or a quick snack if you have no time for proper cooking.
These pizza-like snacks come in a variety of flavors and can be made in about five minutes! And to cook them that fast, you just need a microwave.
Many people become concerned about the safety of such food, but we want to tell you that it is absolutely safe to microwave hot pockets!
And in fact, this is the fastest cooking method since it takes less time than doing the same in an oven or in an air fryer.
To microwave your crispy yummies, simply follow several easy steps we describe below:
- Take the frozen Hot Pocket out of the box
- Take them out of the wrapping as well
- Put them in the crisping sleeve
- Place the sleeve on a microwave-safe plate
- Microwave Hot Pockets for 2-3 minutes
- Once cooked through, carefully remove your hot pockets from the crisping sleeve
Very easy, as you can see. However, we would like to remind you that cooking time may vary! It will depend on how many pockets you are cooking at a time.
Also, the wattage of the microwave matters a lot: if your appliance is not much powerful, cooking pockets will take somewhat longer.
Also, it is important to heat them until the internal temperature of each pocket reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit (which is equal to 74 degrees Celsius).
Sometimes, home chefs may give another life hack: after you microwave the hot pocket for 75 percent of the suggested time, take it out of the microwave, and, holding it at both ends, shake it! After you do this, put it back in the microwave and cook for the remaining time.
It may sound weird, we know, but this recommendation actually makes sense.
See, when you shake the hot pocket like this, the hot filling on each end will be able to mix with the colder filling in the middle.
Like that, you will make sure that the inside of the snack will be perfectly hot and melted, without those cool and underheated parts (which often happens to microwaved foods).
What Are Hot Pockets?
Since now you know so much more about cooking and heating hot pockets, you might start wondering what this snack actually is and where it came from.
We know that most people don’t usually bother about it when they are enjoying delicious foods, but who knows, maybe you are curious!
So what are Hot Pockets? They are basically pastries that are filled with different stuffing like pepperoni and cheese, sausage, ham, and even vegetables!
They typically come frozen which means that you can easily and quickly cook them by shoving a hot pocket or two into the microwave or (if you have enough spare time) cook them in the oven or an air fryer.
Even though Hot Pockets is an American brand, and despite the fact that they do remind of the Italian calzone, the dish itself takes its origin from Iran and was brought into the United States by Iranian immigrants.
In particular, the two Jewish Iranian brothers who founded Chef America Inc. in 1977! So thanks to these creative guys, we now have the delight to enjoy these super yummy snacks anytime we want.
Well, folks, this is all that we wanted to share with you today on the subject of hot pockets and how to cook them.
You learned how you can cook these yummies in an air fryer so that they come out of it crispy from the outside and perfectly cheesy from the inside. Also, we explained what to do if you decide to cook them in a microwave or use an oven for this purpose.
In addition, you have learned how to reheat them and we even told you where this popular snack actually comes from!
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